Carey Watermark is Puttin’ on the Ritz in Ft. Lauderdale

Any more Ritzes and someone should throw a party. Carey Watermark Investors Inc., of New York, has acquired a majority interest in the beachfront Ritz-Carlton hotel in Fort Lauderdale, through a joint venture with RCFL Holdco L.L.C., an affiliate of Gencom, the buyers announced Wednesday. Financials on the transaction were not disclosed.

The Fort Lauderdale property is a AAA Five Diamond hotel and features 166 guestrooms, 34 third-party–owned condominium hotel units, 28 third-party–owned residential units, 25,000 square feet of meeting and function space, a 8,500-square-foot spa, a 29,000-square-foot pool deck with an infinity pool, skywalk to the beach, fitness center, business center and four food and beverage outlets.

An extensive renovation is planned for 2015, according to CWI, and will include a re-conceptualization of one of the restaurants, renovation and expansion of the spa to include new sauna and steam areas, the addition of an indoor/outdoor bar, updates to the main lobby and other public spaces, and the creation of a 3,700-square-foot retail store. Details regarding the latter are not yet available, according to the CWI spokesperson.

The hotel will continue to be managed by The Ritz-Carlton Co., L.L.C., an affiliate of Marriott International.

“[W]orking on our third transaction with Gencom in recent months, we were able to recapitalize the asset to fund an extensive renovation,” Michael Medzigian, CEO of CWI 1, stated in an announcement. “We look forward to executing on additional value-add and cash flow-generating opportunities over the coming months and years.”

From 2009 to 2014, RevPAR in the Fort Lauderdale hospitality market experienced a compound annual growth rate of 7.6 percent, and RevPAR is projected to continue to increase over the next two years, according to data from PKF Hospitality Research provided by CWI.